Top Gear struggled to get hold of a Ferrari Enzo in its early years — until Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason struck a deal with Jeremy Clarkson that ended up breaking BBC rules07:21, 30 Jun 2026During the mid-2000s and the first half of the 2010s, Top Gear was an absolute phenomenon, with A-list celebrities and exotic supercars regularly gracing the beloved BBC show.‌Yet in the early years following its revival in the early 2000s, the programme didn't quite command the same level of influence. This made it considerably more difficult for the team to secure the vehicles they had their hearts set on.‌One car that proved particularly elusive was the then-brand-new Ferrari Enzo, the manufacturer's flagship model named after company founder Enzo Ferrari.‌With only a handful of Ferrari Enzos on British soil, the production team struggled to get their hands on one — until Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason struck up a conversation with Jeremy Clarkson. It would be Nick's very own Enzo that ultimately featured on the show, though there was a condition attached, reports Wales Online.Speaking on Benedict Fowler's Road to Success podcast, Nick revealed how the arrangement came about. Setting the scene, Benedict noted: “It was the first time Jeremy Clarkson and the BBC ever shouted out someone's book because they were not allowed to do advertising on the BBC.”‌Nick, 82, recalled the story behind lending his prized Enzo, saying: “I'd been approached by Top Gear to loan them, I think it was the Enzo. There were only a few in the UK anyway. None of us were enormously keen on lending the car for free.“So that initially ruled the whole thing out, but I was talking to Jeremy about it and I said, ‘Shame, because I've just done this book and it would be quite a nice thing to get it on television.’”‌Nick added: “He said, ‘Give me a little time to have a look at this’. So basically, what he did was total overkill on selling the book.”Following this, Benedict, who has conducted interviews with numerous figures from the automotive and motorsport world, revealed he had received a text from former Top Gear producer Andy Wilman detailing the consequences of Jeremy's promotion of Nick's book on the programme.Article continues belowBenedict said the text read: “My favourite memory of Nick's is his Top Gear appearance with the Enzo. It immortalised us in the BBC editorial compliance department. By BBC rules we weren't supposed to plug his book in exchange for the loan of the Enzo.“But we thought, eff it, we're happy to do that. And from then on, that film was used in every editorial standards lecture to newcomers about the rules of product placement at the BBC. Nick's and my badge of honour.”The footage went ahead regardless and featured in the final cut of Top Gear that aired to audiences. As the programme continued its trajectory into the mid-to-late 2000s, it soared in popularity, ultimately becoming one of the BBC's most valuable editorial properties.